


Orange Juice: Pudding Yellow

by FlorarenaKitasatina



Category: One Hundred Percent Orange Juice, Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Adventure, By The Sweet Gods, Comedy, Crass Humor, Crossover, Gen, How Do I Tag, How even
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-19
Updated: 2019-11-20
Packaged: 2021-02-13 00:55:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21485683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlorarenaKitasatina/pseuds/FlorarenaKitasatina
Summary: A new adventure in the Hoshu region awaits! Most trainers would be bored to tears, or wondering where in life things went wrong. Not Kai; he's one of the ludicrously lucky few to be gifted a task by the Professors who are researching Pokémon for some purpose he couldn't care more about. Of course, he has to deal with all sorts of bullshit, from frenemies Peat and Marc to those who would wish harm and misery on others.Can't a trainer like him catch a break for once in his life? And train in peace while he's at it?
Kudos: 2





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Co-authored with Percival, who chuckled a bit at the suggestions thrown around. Tagged Mature for the crass humor and implications. The region is entirely fanmade, custom only for this story.

School was, in many respects, a tedious affair. Day after day, more of the same save the occasional school field trip to take away just enough monotony to encourage continuing towards graduation. Like many regions, the Trainer's School of Hoshu was no different from the standard tawdry drab that many schools boasted. Unlike most Trainer's Schools, though, Hoshu's had a tendency to admit older students as opposed to the younger ones, though that didn't stop the young ones from applying anyway.

Three such youngsters, an almost-young-adult in the case of the youngest and young adults in the case of the other two, were traversing down one of the many halls after a long day of testing and general boredom. The older of the boys, yawning and putting his hands behind his back, let his cravat sway as he walked. "Damn, Mr. Takahara's just had the biggest stick in his ass today!" he complained, hands shooting from behind his head to grasp at the air in an act of futility. "Just would not stop bitching even as we put our pencils down!"

The younger of the boys nodded, his glasses shining with the motion. "At least we don't have to deal with him anymore. I'm pretty sure we're about to graduate," he said coolly, smirking as the blue-haired older turned to him with an incredulous look that soon turned thoughtful.

The only girl amongst them fiddled with her twin braided pigtails as she turned to them. "Kai's right, Peat. Let Mr. Takahara be someone else's problem. We studied extra hard, right?"

Peat nodded, pulling a hand up to comb through his short blue locks. "Yes we did, Marc. Yes we did," he conceded, smiling. "I'll just be glad to get out of here." He chuckled, eyes twinkling in delight. "Pretty soon we'll have our trainer IDs, and then we can go out into the rest of Hoshu!"

Marc giggled as the trio rounded a bend, coming upon other students filing into different rooms, probably to catch up on whatever projects somehow still needed doing. "So, what will you two do once we can travel?" she asked as they filtered between other students clamoring in the hallway or just generally hanging out with their peers.

"Me? Kick ass and take names, maybe even become the Champion if I can manage it," Peat said, still grinning.

Kai began to smile. "I'd just challenge myself to see if I can overcome my limitations," he said, turning to Marc as they reached the end of the hall. "You?"

"I think I'd want to do more sightseeing, but I'll definitely train," Marc said. 

Approaching a pair of double doors at the end of the hall, they were parted to reveal a manicured yard outside with a smaller building stationed next to the school. Briskly heading there, the trio entered the building and veered down a hall, where yet more students were idling about and chatting.

"How hard would you train?" Peat asked, grinning.

They stopped at a door, Kai fumbling in his pocket for a moment before producing a key and thrusting it into the lock to open it. "Well, I'd train so hard that I…" Marc trailed off, turning to the door Peat watched Kai unlock, then at something next to his feet. "Huh? When did this get here?" She bent over to pick it up, finding an envelope embossed with a wax seal of a robot with a cannon for one arm and no feet to speak of, clutching an egg with its other arm. She looked to her companions as Peat opened the door. "Were either of you expecting a letter?"

Both boys turned to her and shook their heads. "I wasn't," Peat said, frowning. "Where's it from?" His eyes went wide when Marc flipped the envelope so the seal faced him. "Oh hell! The Professors sent us something?!" He snatched the envelope from Marc's hands and opened it as she gave a squawk of protest, unfolding the paper within. Kai and Marc leaned to him to read its contents, and gradually all faces gaped as they read.

Dear Peat, Marc, and Kai,

First of all, congratulations. We've received and graded your exams accordingly, and you've passed with flying colors. We're exceptionally proud of you; you three have been the hardest-working students we've seen in your generation. That said, could you drop by the laboratory tomorrow for a post-graduation gift?

Principals/Professors Shifu and Yukito

The trio shared looks, comprehension dawning. They looked down the hall, and noticed that few other students had even obtained letters embossed with the same seal. More than a handful were eyeballing them with scowls on their faces. Hastily, the trio retreated into their dorm and closed the door, locking it even as they huddled to reread the rather short letter once again.

Adrenaline started pumping through their bodies in that moment. "Does this mean…" Kai muttered, hope in his eyes.

"It does it does it does!" Marc exclaimed, jumping for joy. She dashed off deeper into the room, elation painting her face. "Guys, we gotta pack!"

Peat chuckled, grinning as he folded the letter back up and stuffed it in his coat. "You heard her, Kai. Let's get rolling."

Kai nodded, face split with a wide smile. "Not like we had much to pack here, but okay," he said, walking over to the nearby couch, where he heard the sound of clothes rustling. "This is better than that one time we snuck booze here!" he said, walking to the sound to open another door. In it wasn't much; three backpacks, three beds, three dressers, and a lamp. Marc was busying herself emptying the furthest dresser, eyes gleaming as she put everything she could into a red backpack matching her dress.

Marc paused in her packing, as Kai opened the middle drawer as he took a black backpack. "What, that time Peat cried into my shoulder like a baby?" she asked.

Kai nodded. "_That_ time," he said.

"Nah nah nah, I didn't cry like a baby!" Peat exclaimed, taking a blue backpack off of the closest-to-the-exit, dirtiest bed as he claimed the dresser nearest to the door.

"Suuuuuuuure you didn't," Kai said, nodding extra-slowly in case his sarcasm somehow flew over Peat's head. "Just like you didn't share your bed with Marc that same night."

"Nah! I kicked some dude's ass when he tried grabbing Marc and pulling her away into another room!" Peat said, waving Kai off with a hand and a shake of his head.

"No you didn't. I had to drag you away before you could punch Mr. Takahara in the face," Marc replied, frowning as Kai and Peat continued to banter as if she weren't there.

Kai turned to Marc, nodding. "I'd have paid to see Mr. Takahara getting punched in his giblets," he said, before turning back to Peat again. "But we'd have all gotten expelled," he pointed out. "And besides… was that bed you shared _always_ that dirty? Sure smells interesting nowadays." Silence permeated the room, and both Peat and Marc looked at Kai with wide eyes and pale faces. "I mean… how are you two gonna explain _that_ to the Professors?"

The silence held for maybe five minutes, save the rustling of clothes as all three hurried to pack everything. Once the drawers were emptied, Peat suddenly piped up with a flustered face, _"So I saw this Taillow one time!"_

"Was it a shiny?" Marc asked, equally flustered as she zipped up her backpack.

Peat shook his head. "But it knocked on the window, and tried getting in! I bet it belonged to a thief or something!" Peat exclaimed, donning a warbling smile that threatened to cave at the slightest poke.

Marc rolled her eyes. "Yeah, as if the Elite Four would allow thieves to prosper in Hoshu," she said snidely, flush fading.

"Eh, whatever. Let's just get dinner and rest up. Big day," Kai pointed out, to much nodding from the other two.

***

A bespectacled man with short, black hair and a labcoat sat at a desk in a darkened office, hands tented in front of his lips and a small television playing a sordid tape in front of him. "How should I punish this… what's the right punishment for something like this… and _should_ I even punish this?" he asked, watching intently even as he kept his emotions at bay.

Such _scandalous_ activity happening on school grounds would not be tolerated for much longer. The fact that the culprits were graduating only irked him, and he began to grind his teeth at the notion. "Just a few nights ago… on exam week's crescendo no less… what in the hell were they _thinking?_" the man wondered, glaring at the depraved acts the television was relaying to him. He heard a door creaking open, and reached for the remote to pause the lurid, candid video in its tracks before lifting his head and addressing the other man who walked in. "Ah, Yukito… I was expecting you," the man said.

The other, nodding with his short silver hair bristling slightly, leveled a glare at the first with his own bespectacled eyes. "Shifu…"

Shifu nodded. "Out with it, Yukito," he said.

Yukito glowered, happy to oblige. "Why have you hidden this for as long as those two have been learning here?" he hissed, baby blue eyes narrowed coldly at Shifu.

Shifu quirked a brow. "Hiding what?" he asked, standing up slowly with his almost-black eyes glinting in curiosity.

Yukito gestured to the television. "The sexually inappropriate acts taking place in Dorm Room 569!" he yelled, an eye twitching. "Why haven't you taken action to stop it?!"

"I was unsure as to what punishment would fit the crime!" Shifu yelled back, brow furrowing as Yukito got into his face.

"Expulsion would have been a good start!" Yukito retorted, grabbing Shifu by his collar.

"But they probably would have found ways to keep doing it here!" Shifu retorted, grabbing one of the hands on his collar and accidentally pressing the remote with the other. Immediately, the sordid tape began to play once again, in a volume just loud enough to make Yukito turn to it with a brow raised.

"With or without alcohol involved?" Yukito asked, turning back to Shifu with hands still clutching the collar.

_"Yes!"_ Shifu replied, scowling. Ignoring the playing tape he went on, "Besides expulsion, what would you have suggested?!"

"Rehab for one! I'm not having any teen pregnancies in my school!" Yukito replied, starting to shake Shifu.

"Do you think they might have been using condoms?" Shifu proposed. Save the tape, silence permeated.

Yukito let go, face blanking. He slowly nodded. "Broken condoms… that could be punishment enough," he said firmly. "Let's forget about this and have them deal with the consequences of their actions." He turned to the television. "So… we should shred that tape…"

Shifu shook his head, dusting his collar off and pressing on the remote to pause the television again. "Let's keep it. Just in case we get more sordid activity like this," he said.

"So we can expel immediately?" Yukito asked.

Shifu nodded. "And illustrate to whoever we expel our failure of the first time this sordid activity flew under our radar," he answered. He turned the television off with another press of the button. "Should we begin preparations for our graduates?"

Yukito nodded. "Already ahead of you; the Pokémon have been prepared," he said with a warm smile on his face. "And we have extra Pokéballs prepared too, should we run short."

"Splendid. Now, let's double-check just to be sure…" Shifu began, grinning wickedly.

"Oh, and we'll have to separate the students' dorms next year, to discourage any… deviancy," Yukito added.

***

Peat, Marc, and Kai were the last three students to leave the school grounds, purpose in mind and backpacks on their backs as they walked from the manicured school yard towards the town in the distance. Down a road they went, passing by trimmed hedges marking the path to the Trainer's School in the shape of popsicles. Marc was abuzz with excitement as she babbled, "I can't wait to leave Cremis Town! Do you guys wonder what sort of Pokémon we'll encounter?!"

"Maybe strong ones?" Peat offered with a grin.

"Cool ones," Kai answered, also smiling as the houses came into view.

"Cute ones!" Marc exclaimed, beaming as they passed the first house. "Say, where's the lab? It's been forever since we've been out of school."

Peat and Kai looked around, trying to spot anything that looked like a laboratory. The three veered down a side street, where they saw a small blue rabbit-looking creature sifting through some trash. "Is that a wild Nidoran?" Marc asked, staring at the Pokémon as it turned to her.

Peat nodded. "Yeah, one of the hornless girls," he said. Immediately, the Nidoran bolted off down the way they were going. "Should we follow it?"

"Well, people might complain about trash spilling out of bags, so…" Kai trailed off, before breaking into a sprint after the Nidoran. Peat and Marc sighed behind him, shook their heads, and bolted after him. Down another main road the Nidoran went, before darting into another alley with the trio hot on her little heels. A few passersby spotted the commotion, but did little else save stop what they were doing and stare at what was happening.

The Nidoran was fast for her size, though, and it took a few more turns through alleys before she started to gain ground from her pursuers. "Nido! Nidooooooo!" she cried, heading onwards as the distance between her and the three lengthened.

That is, until she ran into a set of unmoving, socked legs standing next to a fence. "Nidoran, were you causing trouble again?" a soft voice asked, right as Peat and the other two musketeers caught up to see the Nidoran being picked up by a woman with long blond hair and a blue jacket.

"She was digging in trash! We thought she was wild!" Marc exclaimed, watching as the woman pouted at the Nidoran with the sternest, yet oddly apathetic, expression she had ever seen.

The woman looked back up at Marc, expression straddling the very thin line of 'impossible to read.' "She… isn't. I'm caring for her as a favor for someone," she explained. She held the squirming Nidoran in a firm grip, heedless of the Nidoran's pouting. "And if she was digging in trash, then it would be bathtime."

"Have you tried stopping her from doing that?" Peat asked, frowning.

The woman nodded. "This is the fifth time she has done it now," she said. Turning to the building the fence belonged to, she lifted a hand and gestured the three towards the nearby gate. "Come; you're expected," she said, walking over and opening the gate herself before striding inside.

"Nidooooooooooo!" Nidoran cried, still struggling in a valiant effort to flee her fate. She looked at Peat, who shook his head sadly.

"Sorry, can't bail you out. You fucked up, sis," Peat said. Nidoran wilted, resigned to her fate of bathtime and scoldings. He turned to the woman and asked, "By the way, who are you?"

The woman turned to him with a soft, barely-present smile. "Sora," she said, opening the door of the building. The trio followed her, hearing the sound of bickering further back in the building. A hall of doors stretched before them ending in a pair of doors at the end, lab aides entering and leaving at their leisure as they chatted about various things. Sora caught one on the sleeve with her hand as he made to pass her. "Where's the nearest tub?" she asked.

The aide pointed at a nearby door a few knobs down. "Just take a right after, and you should find the tub," he said. Looking at the hapless Nidoran, he asked, "Misbehaved again?"

Sora nodded, and without another word, took the Nidoran in the indicated direction. The aide she'd stopped noticed the trio staring at him and grinned. "Oh! You three! The Professors were wondering where you guys went!"

Marc and Peat shared a glance. Then Marc turned back to the aide. "We're late?" she asked.

The aide shook his head. "No, no, no, not at all!" he said, turning and walking ahead of them. The trio shrugged and followed him, noting quite idly that the bickering steadily grew louder the closer they got. "Oh, they're at it again," he grumbled as he parted the doors, allowing the bickering to spill out in full force.

"Who's at it again?" Kai asked, brow quirked as he started absorbing the actual words being flung to and fro between whoever decided to pick a fight in the lab.

"The Professors," the aide said with a tired sigh. "I swear, one day they'll share the same bed fighting."

"You're wrong, Yukito! He completely dominated her in bed!" someone shouted at the far back. "He channeled the force that I enacted to dominate Kyoko's ass!"

_"Weak. As. A. Dunsparce!"_ the other argumentative combatant roared.

_"Says you, Mr. Caterpie Crotch!"_ the first howled in anger.

The aide turned red. "... they're stooping that low today," he groaned, shaking his head. "Alright then… kids, prepare yourselves…" The three turned red as they filed deeper into the building, past empty tables and stocked bookshelves as they meandered their way towards the source of the fighting.

_"At least I get to work! I break through resistances faster than you break into tears!"_ the second yelled, as Peat, Marc, and Kai followed the aide into a square room where the Professors stood shouting each other's ears off. Near them was a table with three Pokéballs, and a large parcel that was left unopened. Kai raised his hand, wondering if perhaps these bozos had noticed his and the others' presence.

_"Bullshit! You're a damned bottom! I could call her right now and get her to prove it!"_ Apparently not; the Professors had locked eyes and horns with each other at this rate, and the shouting match didn't look to be going anywhere anytime soon. Peat waved his arms, trying to get their attention without saying anything.

_"Weakling!"_ And Peat was not successful in his endeavors to attract attention. Marc jumped up and down, hoping to be noticed.

_"Tiny!"_ Nope, eyes and horns were still locked, and so she went without notice. 

Finally, the aide loudly cleared his throat, and the Professors turned to him. "I've brought the _young and impressionable_ graduates you asked for," he said bluntly. He stepped aside to let the trio approach, their eyes wide as they stared at the Professors.

Yukito nodded and waved. "Good. Return to your duties," he said, though Kai was convinced he heard a note of anger somewhere in his voice. He turned to the trio with a rather fixed smile spread across his face. "I'm sorry you had to see… that side of us."

Kai waved him off with a hand. "Everybody's got an inner asshole to deal with," he pointed out.

"But still, you shouldn't have had to see that," Yukito retorted. "So anyway… first things first, your trainer IDs," he said, reaching into his pocket to produce three identical cards. He handed them to the trio and gestured to a machine behind them. "Use that over there to fill out information, and viola."

The three looked at each other and nodded, with Marc going first. When she was done, Peat and Kai followed suit, both jostling for a bit before deciding that one at a time was quicker. In the end, Kai went last, and when he was done, they returned to the front of the stocked table. Stowing their trainer IDs in their pockets, they looked to the Professors, both of whom were now grinning.

Yukito clapped his hands together, his smile becoming more genuine as he tilted his head. "So… you're now officially trainers," he said with beaming pride. Shifu pulled a utility knife from his pocket, and approached the box to begin opening it after unsheathing the blade. “And within this package, are a set of Pokémon for you to use. As official trainers, you now have the privilege of exploring the expansive Hoshu region in its entirety! With many wondrous Pokémon to meet and catch, several amazing cities and towns to explore and learn about, and many great challenges to overcome along the path you’ll travel! And that’s ignoring the secrets we don’t even know about yet! Now, as for what we’ve called you here for, we—”

As Yukito spoke, Shifu decided to throw in his two bits, "Long story short, we want you to catch a lot of Pokémon throughout the region on your soon-to-be-gifted-to-you Pokédexes…" He fumbled with the box as Yukito turned to glare daggers at him, and he grinned wickedly in turn. "Once I can get this damn thing open." Shifu waved a hand at the Pokéballs sitting near the box. "Go ahead and take your pick."

Peat nodded and went first, picking up the leftmost ball and tossing it into the air for a moment before catching it. "Huh… oddly light…" He pushed the button, and the Pokéball opened to let red energy coalesce in front of his feet, revealing a tiny reddish-orange bird with a downy mane and a feather sticking out of its head. His eyes went wide. "A Rufflet?"

"A shiny one," Yukito affirmed with a nod. The Rufflet chirped, looked Peat over, and pattered over to sit on his foot with wide eyes. "It seems he likes you," he added.

Peat bent over to pick the Rufflet up, placing it on his shoulder. "Say, little buddy, you ready to kick some ass?" he asked. The Rufflet puffed up and chirped with a nod of affirmation.

Marc nodded and went to claim the rightmost ball, following Peat's example to find a bird before her taller than she was, with a hide hewn of steel with crimson feathers lining its wings. "Skar! Skaaaaaaaaar!" the bird screeched, turning to Marc with an evaluating gaze that held for a few moments before it leaned down to nuzzle her. Somewhat startled, she raised her hands to pet the bird's beak.

"A Skarmory, huh?" Kai noted.

"What was the saying again, Shifu, birds of a feather bed together?" Yukito asked, garnering a shrug from Shifu in response. 

Kai ignored them, approached to take the last ball, and wasted no time opening it to find an orange lizard with a flaming tail materializing at his feet. He smirked. "Oooh, Charmander." The Charmander looked at him and grinned, its tail burning brightly.

Satisfied with their Pokémon, the three turned to the Professors as Shifu finally opened the blasted box and parted its flaps. He dug in, and pulled out three identical devices, all crimson, that were round with a berry design embossed on it. Flipping his open, Kai found twin circles therein, stacked atop each other with an odd tip in the topmost one, while the bottom one was bigger and took up most of the device. Kai put his hand on the screen, and it flickered to life with a glow displaying three silhouettes that filled in with features.

"Also, we'll give you these," Shifu added, handing Marc some extra Pokéballs. Marc grinned and stuffed them in a sideflap of her backpack, and Peat did the same once he was handed his. Kai followed suit when he got handed his own set, and fiddled with his Pokédex some more before sharing glances with Peat and Marc. Marc and Peat returned their Pokémon to their balls, and proceeded to leave with their bounty.

Kai stayed behind as the Professors glanced and glared at each other again. "Why don't you two take it to the bedroom and sort it out there? Sounds like you both have a lot eating away at your asses," he said before taking his leave. The Professors stared at him slack-jawed for a moment, then turned to each other once again.

"Should we heed the young and impressionable?" Yukito asked. Shifu didn't answer, too stunned by the audacity to even pull one out of his ass for a few moments before he choked something out.

"If-if we do... w-w-we-e're having a f-foursome. D-deal?"


	2. I- Tagteam

Out of the southern town gate the trio strode, smiles on their faces and their new Pokémon tagging along behind them. Skarmory in particular had a habit of cawing "Skar! Skaaaaaaaar!" every few minutes, flapping its wings proudly as it trundled after Marc. At least it was careful with those wings; according to the Pokédex, its feathers were razor-sharp.

Rufflet was different, opting to sit on Peat's shoulder and just admire the scenery. Every now and again it would chirp and puff, its lone head-feather bristling as it did. Charmander waddled behind Kai, tail blazing and waving with its movements as it beamed at its new trainer. "Char!" Charmander called, causing Kai to turn to it with a warm smile on his face. Charmander pointed at something behind them, and Kai stopped to fully turn around.

Peat and Marc noticed what he was doing and halted, with Skarmory likewise turning. "Skar?" it asked, canting its head as a dust cloud in the distance started to grow louder and larger. The trio squinted their eyes for a moment, only to break into amused grins as a Nidoran in soap suds rushed headlong down the road as fast as her tiny legs would carry her.

"Nido! Nidonidonidonido!" the Nidoran called, soap suds flying off her body as she ran. Behind her, Sora sprinted with her legs nothing more than a blur in her pursuit, a loofa in one hand and a bottle of shampoo in the other.

"Nidoran! For the last time! You! Need! A bath!" Sora called, apathy somehow firmly in place even as Marc could've sworn she saw annoyance glinting in those firm green eyes.

"Nido! Niiiiiiiidooooooooo!" Nidoran mouthed off, running faster in a hopeless effort to avoid the dreaded bathtime.

"Bloody hell, how much does she hate bathing?" Peat asked, brows raised as the mobile dust cloud came closer. Rufflet ruffled its feathers and chirped with a cocked head, which Kai guessed was its equivalent to a shrug of the shoulders.

Skarmory watched, a glint in its eyes as it raised one of its talons ever so slightly, no more than an inch from the ground. The Nidoran made to run between its legs, only to be snatched and halted by the claw that picked her up to present to Sora as she skid to a halt in front of its steel-hewn chest. "Skar," it said, eyes closed in delight.

Nidoran squirmed again, but those armed arms plucked her deftly from Skarmory's claw. Sora was meticulously mindful enough to avoid cutting herself and Nidoran on accident as she stood to full height, the rebellious Pokémon squirming in another attempt to get away. "Nido! Nidonidonidonido!" Nidoran howled, kicking and bristling as much as she could.

Alas, Sora was undeterred; she didn't even seem to notice Nidoran's barbs catching onto her jacket. She looked at Marc and smiled with a nod. "Thank you. I'm not sure what I would have done if Nidoran hid in someone else's house again," she said serenely, before leveling a stern glare at Nidoran that halted her struggling on the spot. "And as for you, missy… you've earned yourself some time-out after we finish your bath."

"Nido…" The fight left Nidoran, and all she could do was wilt under the withering glare.

"Wait, she hid in someone's house?" Kai asked.

Sora turned to him, glare instantly melting back into that tiny but fuzzy smile. "Oh yes. She broke things… I wound up having to pay for the damages out of my own pocket," she said. "You see… the person whom I'm babysitting Nidoran for was… his heart was in the right place, but he lacked the _discipline._"

Kai nodded, starting to see where that was going. "So, you're balancing Nidoran out before she does something hopelessly stupid?" he asked.

Sora nodded, still smiling. "Baby steps, though. She's learning," she affirmed. "Besides, her original trainer is travelling abroad, but… he couldn't bring Nidoran with him."

Kai and Peat shared glances. Marc piped up, "When will he be back?"

Sora's smile faltered the littlest bit. "In a few months," she said. "Nidoran cannot stay out of my sight for long."

"Where's her original trainer?" Peat asked, noticing Nidoran's ears twitching the slightest bit.

"He's currently in the neighboring Hanchi region, and last I heard he was in one of its famous mountain peaks," Sora said. She turned to Nidoran for a moment, then back to the trio. "I'll meet you three at…" Her brows creased and tried pressing together as she racked her brain for a moment, "Route 31. I'll have something to give you… once I'm done bathing Nidoran here."

Peat nodded, grinning. "Route 31's past the gate leading into town, right?"

Sora shook her head. "That's Route 41; it's closed off for the time being. Route 31 is past the Trainer's School," she said. "How long have you three been in school?"

"Three years straight," Kai answered with a shrug. He could've sworn that Charmander looked at him funny when he said that. "Mr. Takahara held us back two times before the Professors got onto his ass about it."

Sora's smile instantly vanished. Her eyes narrowed slightly, and Nidoran shivered in her grip. "I don't very much like Mr. Takahara," she said darkly. "We're… not exactly on good terms with each other."

Marc held up her hands and approached Sora with bravado. "Wait wait wait, lemme guess," she began, puffing her chest up slightly to better look Sora in the eye as she said, "he grabbed your ass and made lewd gestures?"

A rueful laugh left Sora, and her head shook before she calmed down. "Not to me, but to… to one of my friends when she went to that school," she said.

"Did that friend beat his ass?" Peat asked, grinning.

Sora nodded, her smile returning. "She didn't get expelled, either," she answered. "Unlike me, when _I_ joined in the asskicking. I'm still wondering how he didn't get fired."

"What happened after you were expelled?" Marc asked.

"I was shipped to the military," Sora answered, with a blaise shrug of her shoulders. Turning around, she called out, "And by the way, if Mr. Takahara bothers you three, let Yukito know as soon as you can!" With that she took her leave, Nidoran pouting on the return trip to the lab.

Kai turned to his companions, who shrugged at him. Their Pokémon did likewise. "Why is she worried about Mr. Takahara crawling up our asses?" Peat asked. "It's not like he ever leaves the school grounds."

"Maybe he does, to go to shady tiddybars and drink the night away," Kai replied, shaking his head at that lurid suggestion. "Wouldn't be surprised if he drank on school grounds."

"You think that's why he may be grumpy all the time?" Marc said, crossing her arms over her chest as she and the others began to double back to the school grounds. "It's not like _he's_ managed to become a trainer. If what you're saying is true, Kai, then I'm surprised he doesn't reek of booze yet."

"I think he's just jealous that we pulled the feat off and he didn't," Peat said, waving a hand dismissively. Rufflet chirped, puffing up with a nod.

Charmander jumped up and down, and Kai paused to pick it up and hold it close to his chest. Charmander beamed, waving its arms like a little kid as it took in Cremis Town for its small town glory. "Just glad to be out of your Pokéball, aren't you?" Kai asked, to which Charmander nodded eagerly.

"Probably also glad to not be near the Professors whenever they get into their moods," Marc added, to which Skarmory nodded with another flap of its wings. Rufflet chirped once more, nodding hastily and rubbing its head with one of its wings as though soothing a headache. Peat caught the gesture out of the corner of his eye, and lifted a hand to scratch his new partner affectionately. Rufflet leaned into the touch, tapping one of his talons against the shoulder repeatedly as the scratching continued.

"At any rate, they don't have to hear the yelling again, which is good for them." Peat's face maintained its grin somehow, and only went wider as he asked, "Say, I wonder if there's berries past Cremis town. If there's one bet I'm hedging right now, I think our new pals are hungry."

Marc crossed her arms as they weaved down a sidestreet in their effort to get closer to the school grounds. "Why's Route 41 closed? Last I heard, it was open to the public."

Kai shrugged, careful not to jostle Charmander doing it. "Maintenance, I guess?" He rolled his eyes as Marc puffed up a bit and added, "Haven't been to Route 41 before. Don't ask me."

"Neither have I," Peat joined in, still scratching his Rufflet as they turned down another road and went past the lab. Within, they could hear Nidoran raising a big enough fuss that the windows rattled and the fence shuddered. The trio paused to let the sight soak in. "By Arceus and the Sweet Gods, did her previous trainer teach her Hyper Voice?"

"I don't think Nidoran can learn Hyper Voice," Marc remarked, shaking her head. "That's probably Echoed Voice. Which… is not that much better."

"That's certainly an Uproar if I've ever seen it," Kai remarked, dimly hearing Sora shout at Nidoran to calm down. Onwards the three continued with a shrug of their shoulders. "That should get the Professors off each other's throats though. Sora looked like she had it under control."

"It should," Peat agreed with a nod, with Rufflet raising his wings to his head in a manner reminiscent of covering one's ears. Charmander mimicked the same motion, and neither of them lowered their limbs until the lab was well behind them. A few more sidestreets after that, and the popsicle hedges lining the path to the Trainer's School started coming into view.

Going up the trail was relatively easy and quiet, and their new partners certainly enjoyed the view, all eyes sparkling and wandering. Going past the school and dorms, however, proved a different matter, for between them stood a grim-faced man with sterling white hair, arms crossed, and patches of metal offsetting his dark skin in places that made him look more like a jigsaw puzzle than a person, including his forehead.

The trio halted a ways from the man, who glared daggers at all of them. The Pokémon tensed, as did their trainers. "Skaaar…" Skarmory grumbled, wings spread as it stepped in front of Marc with feathers gleaming in the sun. Its eyes narrowed coldly at the man, whose own pair did likewise. Charmander's tail blazed, and it tugged at one of Kai's sleeves to be let down. When Kai turned to it, mouth opening to ask why, Charmander mutely pointed at the lad that Skarmory was looking to pick a fight with, a single and resolute nod following the motion. Rufflet didn't move, watching the scene hawkishly.

Finally, it was Peat who broke the silence. "Alright Mr. Takahara, what do you want?" he asked, puffing up as if about to storm over and hit the lad himself. Rufflet mimicked the motion, chirping with eyes turned into thin, angry slits.

"Bout time you troublemakers got Pokémon that fit you to a T," Mr. Takahara called back, slowly donning a very fixed, very angry smile upon his face as he tilted his head. He uncrossed his arms and reached for his pocket, digging around before producing three Pokéballs that were shrunken. With a push of the button on each, they grew in size to fit comfortably in the crook of his arm. "So how's about a post-graduation battle for you lot, three on three?"

Peat, Marc, and Kai shared glances, then looked at their Pokémon. Skarmory, Rufflet, and Charmander nodded in unison, and so did the new trainers. "Well, our Pokémon have already made up their minds," Marc said. "Seems they hate you as much as we do."

Mr. Takahara's smile spread to a disconcerting degree. "Alright then! Come on out, boys!" he called, opening his Pokéballs with his other arm to call forth three different Pokémon: a knee-height, blue turtle with a brown shell and a fluffy tail seemingly hewn of clouds, a two-legged creature with a red-black helmet and blades on said helmet, ribs and hands, and a purplish-grey pterodactyl with a pronounced jaw that was lined with teeth.

"Aw no fair, the fucker has an Aerodactyl!" Kai called, steam threatening to billow out his ears before Peat grasped his shoulder. Rufflet hopped off to join Skarmory and Charmander, and Peat idly thumbed to Skarmory with a nod saying 'yeah, and we have this bird.'

"But he's packing a Wartortle too," Marc grumbled, eyeballing the turtle warily. "We'll have to juggle it and Aerodactyl."

Mr. Takahara smiled smugly. "You three think you can take on my 'mons? How's about I kick your sorry asses from now into next year!" He puffed up as he turned to Wartortle. "Wartortle, Water Pulse on that scrawny Charmander."

_"Water Pulse?!"_ Kai squawked as Wartortle raised its head, a ring of water forming in front of its open mouth. Charmander's eyes went wide, and its legs started doing a little jig as the turtle took aim and fired the water ring. The lizard sprinted out of the way, the water barely grazing its tail as it exploded in front of Kai's feet and sent mud everywhere.

Mr. Takahara ground his teeth at that one, and turned to the helmeted Pokémon. "Pawniard, Sucker Punch!" he ordered, pointing at Charmander. Pawniard nodded and ran up to Charmander, one bladed fist pulsing with a dark aura as it closed in.

"Leer!" Kai called, just as Pawniard closed the distance. Charmander ducked under the strike, expression hardening as it stared into Pawniard's eyes with fire in its own. Pawniard, unsure of what to make of this development, stepped back a pace with a tilt of its head.

Mr. Takahara ground his teeth harder, and he turned to Aerodactyl. _"Rock Slide!"_ he called. Aerodactyl thumped its tail against the ground once, dug its teeth into the dirt to produce enough rocks to keep its jaws parted, then flew into the air with those same rocks falling beneath it as it swept high over the team. The aim was hit-and-miss; Charmander grabbed Pawniard and held it over its head like an umbrella to take the blow, Rufflet hid behind Charmander, and the rocks just glanced off Skarmory's hide to leave a few scratches in its armored down.

"You buffoon!" Mr. Takahara called as Aerodactyl landed, the poor Pokémon flinching at the shout as its owner waved erratically at the graduates. "That wasn't a Rock Slide! There's barely any damage to them!"

"Only thing you're hurting is our ears!" Marc called, turning to Skarmory. "Skarmory, see if you can't do something about Aerodactyl!" Skarmory nodded, head glinting in the sun as it flew at Aerodactyl with enough speed to close the distance. As soon as the Pokémon made eye contact, Skarmory pulled its head back and smashed it into Aerodactyl's own with enough force to resonate in a hard, anvil-like _clang._

"Sweet! Your Skarmory has Iron Head!" Peat observed, clapping his hands as Aerodactyl landed on its feet, staggering and swaying from the strike. Skarmory flew back, watching its stunned opponent momentarily before turning to Pawniard, plucking it from Charmander's grasp with a claw, and using that claw to fling it back to Mr. Takahara's side dismissively. Turning to his Rufflet, Peat called, "Say, buddy, give Pawniard what for!"

Rufflet squawked and puffed, flapping his wings as his tiny talons started to glow orange. Mr. Takahara's eyes flew wide as Rufflet zeroed in on Pawniard, who was still recovering from unexpectedly becoming an umbrella. Before it could counter or retreat, Pawniard found itself being struck, scratched, and sent flying backwards by the glowing talons, so stunned it could not get up once its back hit the ground.

Peat stood slack-jawed for a moment as Rufflet returned to Charmander and Skarmory, landing with a bit of a stumble but chirping as if he were proud of himself all the same. _"Superpower?!"_ he yelped, face pale as he shared a glance with Marc. "Fucking hell, that was a textbook strike, wasn't it!?"

Marc nodded, eyes wide and focused on Pawniard. Pawniard did not get back up from the attack. Mr. Takahara opened one of his Pokéballs and returned the downed Pokémon to its confines with a grumble and a hateful glare being leveled at Rufflet. "One down, but we still have the other two to deal with," she said.

Kai turned to Charmander, sensing what Marc wanted him to do. "Finish off Aerodactyl!" he ordered. Charmander nodded and ran up to the stunned pterodactyl, tail glowing a brilliant blue as it was swept right beneath Aerodactyl's still-wobbly feet. That turned out to be the deciding factor in downing it; stunned, all Aerodactyl could do was topple backwards with its own tail missing Charmander by mere inches. It too was returned to its ball, leaving a pale-looking Wartortle that seemed to be considering the sudden odds stacked against its favor.

Mr. Takahara shook with silent rage as Charmander ran back to Kai, his Wartortle still contemplating its chances and how much it was going to get its shell bashed in. "Get that little burning fucker!" Mr. Takahara ordered, and Wartortle snapped out of its trance with a nod, focusing on Charmander once again. Wartortle formed another ring of water and fired it, that time scoring a direct hit against Charmander's stomach.

"Charmander!" Kai called, watching as Charmander was sent flying back in much the same manner as Pawniard had gone earlier.

The little lizard was knocked flat on its back with a bounce preceding it, and for a moment it looked like it was down and out for the count. But something within Charmander stirred, and shakily it got back to its feet with a stagger and the ghost of a wry smirk spread on its face. It looked to its trainer and nodded, directing that taunting smirk to Mr. Takahara with all the hate it could muster.

Peat pat Kai's shoulder, watching Charmander with a smile. "Looks like he toughed that out, unlike Mr. Takahara's Pawniard," he said warmly.

"Skarmory, make Wartortle's head ring!" Marc called. Skarmory reacted, flying to the turtle with its body parallel with the ground. Before Wartortle could react, Skarmory's head smashed into its own and knocked it a ways back from its trainer, landing much harder than its compatriots. Skarmory returned to Marc's side, keeping its eyes on the turtle. It took a moment, but Wartortle got back up and meandered its way to the battlefield with a shaky series of steps and its head probably echoing inside itself rather painfully.

"Rufflet! Kick its ass before it can fire another shot!" Peat called. Rufflet nodded, and flew to Wartortle with his beak leveled. Wartortle tried batting away the smaller bird as he began pecking feverishly, but it could barely manage to snatch feathers out of the air as the repeated pecking sent it staggering all over again. On the fifth peck, Wartortle went down, too tired to try to repel anymore. Into the ball it went, and Mr. Takahara stuffed his balls back into his pocket with one hand clutching at the air.

"Why you little—" Mr. Takahara began, looking fit to charge the trio when someone clearing their throat caught his attention. He turned to the side, only to find a woman with purple hair and a military beret set on her head, leveling her cold orange eyes at him. In her hand was a riding crop, tapping impatiently against her shoulder.

"Really, Takahara, fighting on school grounds?" the woman scoffed, approaching him with calculated steps. She turned to the trio and nodded to them. "Scram. You had your fun. I'll take this assclown to task." The three went around Mr. Takahara and the woman, but not before Kai picked up Charmander to hold to his chest.

As the inevitable shouting match reached a crescendo, the trio made their way to a fenced gate behind the school, Peat turned to Kai as Rufflet perched on his shoulder again. "Apparently, the Professors take handing out their Pokémon very seriously," he said, raising a hand to scratch at Rufflet. "I didn't know we could have gotten Pokémon with moves usually outside their movepool."

Charmander smirked, looking at Kai with fondness in its eyes. "Maybe the Professors have a move tutor," Marc suggested, garnering looks from the boys and their Pokémon.

"Skar, Skar," Skarmory said with a nod.

Marc turned to her Pokémon, eyes widening. "Wait, they do?" she asked. Another nod answered her. "Why?" Skarmory spread a wing and used it to gesture to the distant fighting, careful to avoid cutting its trainer on accident. "Wait, they knew Mr. Takahara was going to give us shit?" Skarmory nodded to that one, closing its wing.

Peat shrugged, smiling. "Well, at the very least, it paid off. Mr. Takahara's not going to be up our asses again for a long while," he said. "Let's get going while Ms. Trinity sorts him out. I don't know about you four, but me and Rufflet aren't sticking around for that shitshow." With nods, the three opened and then passed the gate, where rolling hills sprouting lush grass spread out behind the school, a winding dirt road cresting the hills as gently as the grass itself. Flowers and scattered trees completed the scene, with distant mountains to stud the horizon.

Sprinting down the path, the three and Skarmory didn't stop until they passed the third hill. Marc skid to a halt, and so did the others, watching her as she suddenly dropped her backpack at her feet, and knelt to fumble with it. "Kai, your Charmander needs something for the near-asskicking it got dished," she said. Reaching into one of the sideflaps as Kai knelt, Peat watched as she dug and dug until she finally pulled out a purple spray bottle.

Kai set Charmander down, and Charmander turned to its stomach as Marc leveled the bottle at it before spraying a few times. Slowly, the pain of crashing and being hit by flying water went away with each pulse of the bottle, and Charmander grinned as the bottle ran dry. "There, all better," Marc said, grinning as she stowed the bottle back in her backpack.

"Say, where'd you get the potion?" Peat asked, watching as Kai picked Charmander back up.

"One of the aides gave it to me on our way out of the lab," Marc said with a shrug, slinging her backpack over her shoulders. "Said I might need it in case we run into trouble."

"So, should we wait for Sora?" Kai asked, parting one arm from Charmander to rub its head affectionately.

Peat nodded. "She said she'd meet us here, didn't she?" He smirked. "I'll bet she'll give us something the Professors forgot about." Then his smirk fell as his look turned thoughtful. "I wonder… how is she gonna get here after dealing with Nidoran?"

Kai chuckled as an absurd thought hit him. "What, is she gonna fly here _without_ a flying-type Pokémon to ride on?" he proposed, causing Peat and Marc to break out in laughter. The laughter died as a shadow zipped overhead, supplemented by a loud and distant wailing. The three and their Pokémon looked up, but as soon as they noticed it the object that produced the shadow was gone, leaving only a semi-cloudy sky as barren as could be.

"Okay, what was that?" Marc asked, looking to Skarmory, who itself seemed to be following something that was farther up ahead. "It wasn't a bird Pokémon, was it?"

Peat noticed Rufflet following Skarmory's example, and promptly trained his eyes in the same direction. "I dunno. But I think we should look into it," he said, taking off down the cresting road. Marc and Kai sighed, but followed after him all the same. Behind them, the grass rustled in places, and dark forms began to spring out of them.


End file.
